ABSTRACT
Viewed against the background of Roman family life as a whole, the accession of tutors, such as those whom we have described, would appear to have been something of a luxury, and the children who benefited from such teaching generally belonged to the more favoured classes of society. Moreover, as this kind of tuition was provided by scholars, who had a particular interest in such subjects as language and literature, rhetoric, or philosophy, it was an intellectual and cultural education, and it would presuppose a basis of elementary knowledge, which might also be imparted within the home. But this more practical instruction at a lower level was in much wider demand, for, whatever the family circumstances, it was generally appreciated that children needed to be taught to read and write, to count, weigh, measure and calculate. For this purpose, parents who had not the time, the inclination or, sometimes, the ability to teach them themselves, and who lacked any suitable assistance, would send their children to a primary school.
